The Irish standard., 1887-01-29
A TRIBUTE TO BALL|NA.
All Mayo Men Love Ballina, All Admire
Her, and if She Be Not Proud of Her
Sons, all Her Sons are Proud of Her.
BALLINA is NOT THE BALLINA
Of Bygone Days; the Last Decade Has
Seen the Pulse of Her Commercial
Life Grow Weak, Indeed.
Anthony j. Gavigan, late of Aclare,
County Sligo, but now of New York,
writes as follows in the Western Peo-

OOuuGJ O1lSO, UuO 11OW VI NOW 4OAh.
writes as follows in the Western Peo-
pie:
8 There is a land ofevery land the pride,
Beloved by heaven DER all the world beside"
sang one of England's sweetest singers,
and if the sentiment is an old one
older far than the oldest monarchy in
the world la sentiment which sprang
into existence before the birth of ma
tions-time has neither impaired its
force nor taken from it one grain of it's
majestic truth. Every person with a
spark of patriotism in his bosom loves
his own country above. all others, and
his native place above all other places
and if there is in this whole wide world
place which the absent Mayo man
thinks is ''beloved by heaven DER all
the world beside,"a a place which has
charm far greater than any other, to
which his heart always leans, his eyes
are ever longingly looking, a place
where memory dwells fondly and long,
and the recollection of which he cher
ishes with deep intensity of feeling,
that place is the grand old town from
which he came, and which to him is
full of associations endearing, and
lasting as life. This is the sentiment of
hundreds of thousands who in their
youth have played on her streets, or
coursed down her hills, and who have
gone out from her and made their
homes in other places. [ do not know
if all townspeople have the same feel
ing, that clannishness for their town
which the people of Balllna have for
theirs, but this know, that go wher-
ever Ballina man is to be found-and
one is to be found almost everywhere
his love for the town of his youth is as
great, aye, greater, than when he left
it. and to be a fellow-townsman is an
open sesame to his hospitality. This
feeling is of course the same at home as
it is abroad, only perhaps in less
marked degree, for it is only those who
have been parted from her for years
whose hearts know the real tenderness
with which they love her. All Mayo
men love Ballina, all admire her, all re-
we're her, and if she he not p.oud of her
sons. all her sons are, am sure, proud
of her. Under whatever sky the Bal
lima man may chance to roam, upon
whatever sea he may sail, his eyes and
heart go back to the dear old mother on
the hill, and
"When the naughty stranger seeks to know
The place of his home and birth.
The flush mounts up from cheek to brow
AS he tells of his native hearth"
Much has she given us to love and OF
which to be proud. Her situation is
one of beauty and delight, her walks
are charming, her views magnificent,
her people hospitable and refined. The
fame of some of her sons has spread
over the habitable globe. But perhaps
it is neither for beautiful picturesque
ness of situation, her charming walks,
her magnificent views, her hospitality
and refinement, nor the fame of her
SONS that the hearts of her children are
drawn towards her. There is some
thing more than all that which we can
not well de6ne-a spell that hangs over
and pervades church, school-room and
playground, alley, nook and corner. But
Ballina is not the Ballina of bygone
days. The last decade has seen the
pulse of her commercial life grow weak
indeed. Some of the Oldest of her busi-
ness houses have been swept away.
Names that but few years ago We're
worth their thousands, that were pillars
in her social, political and religious
structure, have gone down i'll the great
struggle for existence. Wharves.
where once waved the flags Of many
nations. are now almost deserted or
gone to decay. The busy hum has les
sened in her streets, the sound OF the
hammer is almost silent and still. some
of her houses are becoming tenantless,
and her sons and daughters are re-
luctantly turning their backs upon
her. But Notwithstanding all this
and more, and altho her
present may be dark, her future
gives great promise. Already there are
signs that from the ashes of her past
misfortune she will again rise to the old
prosperity. Her blood is not wholly
spent. Amid the general crash and
wreckage, a few stout hearts, strong In
the faith of a bright future, have
thrown themselves into the breach and
helped to stem the tide of distrust and
rum that was carrying everything be-
fore it; and it is to their patriotic ef-
forts and indefatigable energy that she
will be indebted for whatever revival OF
her old-time prestige the future may